Physiology of the dik-dik antelope.
Date
1988Author
Maloiy, GMO
Rugangazi, BM
Clemens, ET
Type
ArticleLanguage
enMetadata
Show full item recordAbstract
1. The East African dik-dik antelope represents a miniature model ruminant for comparative studies. 2. Dik-diks are browsers, consuming a diet consistently high in fermentable and digestable plant material. 3. Their foregut structure is designed for a relatively rapid passage of food and effective absorption of fermentative products. 4. Dik-dik antelopes are very economical in their use of water, having a low daily water exchange and excreting a highly concentrated urine. 5. Dik-diks have been observed to employ three thermoregulatory mechanisms; thermopanting, active sweating and a labile body temperature. 6. Their reproductive cycle is polyestrous with peak breeding in June and December, having a gestation period of between 170 and 174 days.
URI
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/03009629http://erepository.uonbi.ac.ke:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/23593
Citation
Comparative biochemistry and physiology. A, Comparative physiology. 1988;91(1):1-8Publisher
Department of Veterinary Anatomy and Physiology, University of Nairobi
Description
Journal article